Lines & Spaces Notes from St Mary’s Music School
Issue 5
Spring 2022
HIGH NOTES Our Junior Ensemble takes centre stage The path to Enlightenment with Neil Tòmas Smith Celebrity Six becomes Creative Thinkers Inspiring futures with Steven Osborne OBE … and more!
Contents Our Junior Ensemble takes centre stage
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Spotlight on the Dining Hall
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Two minutes with two musicians
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The path to Enlightenment
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What’s the score?
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Beyond the blue door…
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Inspiring futures
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STOP PRESS! 2021 QUEEN’S MEDAL FOR MUSIC GOES TO OUR PRESIDENT, JOHN WALLACE CBE We’re delighted to announce that our School President, Professor John Wallace CBE, was awarded the 2021 Queen’s Medal for Music at the end of last year. Awarded annually to an outstanding individual, or group of musicians, who have had a major influence on the musical life of the nation, this is one of the country’s most prestigious accolades. Born and brought up in Fife, John is an internationally renowned trumpet soloist, composer and educator. He started playing the trumpet as a seven-year-old and his professional career now spans over five decades playing with the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Symphony Orchestra, as well as The Wallace Collection brass ensemble, which he founded. Among many influential roles in music and arts education, he was Principal of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland from 2002 until 2014 and, as Chair of the Music Education Partnership Group (MEPG), was a key influencer in the Scottish Government’s decision to provide free instrumental tuition in state schools in Scotland. With typical modesty, John commented: “I am honoured and humbled to accept this award. I work with many teams of inspiring musicians across every genre of music and across every aspect of music education in Scotland – I just light the touchpaper and stand back. This award is in recognition of the indomitable spirit of those musicians.”
Sign up for our e-newsletter! Keep up to date with everything that’s happening at St Mary’s Music School, including concerts, masterclasses, open days, auditions and advisory auditions, by signing up to receive our regular e-newsletter at https://stmaryscommunity.ptly.uk/signup ©TBC
HUGE CONGRATULATIONS TO CLIODHNA
(S6 Ext) who came third in the British Flute Society Young Performer Competition 2022 – the highest place entrant from the UK in a competition that attracts fierce competition from around the world.
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Our Junior Ensemble takes centre stage Rob Hall’s role encompasses teaching saxophone and clarinet, composition and piano, as well as chamber music coaching and leading the Junior Ensemble. He describes his latest project with the Junior Ensemble, recording a performance of four works for the 2022 CoMA (Contemporary Music for All) Festival, as ‘doing something a little bit different’… What drove the selection of the pieces you decided to perform? In many ways the CoMA Festival was the catalyst for putting the programme together. I selected Los Arcos from Open Score, their catalogue of flexibly-scored works, and hand-picked and arranged the other pieces to work around it. We’ve got five violinists, three cellists, four pianists, a sax player and a trumpet player, aged between nine and thirteen, in the Junior Ensemble. The repertoire had to be shaped around that – you can’t just pull something off the shelf. It was a matter of finding the right pieces, to work with this age group, and arranging them to suit the instruments in the Ensemble. Can you describe the themes, challenges and the highlights of the four pieces you selected? The centre piece, Los Arcos, is by the Irish composer Fiona Linnane. It’s dramatic and incredibly musically descriptive, composed in four sections with four distinct themes – bells, rain, thunder and pilgrims – which we approached through improvisation games that explored extended techniques. One pianist, Daniel, had to pluck and strike the piano strings for thunder – he really got into that role! Another of our young pianists, Elizabeth, volunteered to play the percussion part, which she did beautifully. Working improvisation into the themes with that age group worked really well. It’s good to balance contemporary music with established classical music, for a sense of lineage and I wanted to place Fiona Linnane’s work very carefully in the centre of the performance. We opened with Gerald Finzi’s Carol – the middle work in his Five Bagatelles for Clarinet and Piano from the early 20th century – it’s very lyrical, very pastoral, and I arranged it so that the sax and trumpet would share the part of the clarinet melody. The second piece Now See! is more contemporary. It’s by John Surman, a jazz saxophonist and composer from Devon whose work often engages with classical and folk traditions, and I arranged the plucked string elements for cello rather than jazz double bass. However, we needed someone to take on the jazz improvisation role that Surman would have played, so we brought in John, a senior pupil. He’s a classical saxophonist but has been working on jazz and improvisation with me and was really ready for this. We finished with Last Bloom, by the multi-reedist, Paul McCandless. It’s simple and its beautiful, a lovely way
to come down from Fiona’s more dramatic piece – almost an epilogue. But it was also the hardest piece to master because it’s all homophonic, and the chords are all in close harmony, so the instrumentalists had to phrase together and be absolutely accurate with their timing and tuning. I transcribed the two jazz pieces from recordings and adapted them to suit the Ensemble.
“This recording gave the Junior Ensemble a public platform, so it needed to be good. I might be the leader but I’ve been supported by good teamwork– Will Conway, Paul Stubbings and Dr Valerie Pearson, and everyone involved in filming and editing.” What are the benefits of introducing younger musicians to contemporary and new music? I think it can be transformative. I don’t think there’s any age at which you can’t respond to any type of music. What I love about working with this young group is their open-mindedness. They haven’t yet fully developed their musical identity so you can go in any musical direction and they will follow. As the Ensemble Leader, it’s my responsibility to find music that challenges them but is also manageable. How important are recording experiences for young musicians? To take these pieces up to the level they did is serious stuff; recording is a concentrated process and they really had to raise their game. The instrumentalists see me every week for rehearsals, so for the recording I decided to hand the conducting role to Will Conway. This happens in the real world – players have to get it together very quickly with a new conductor – and I also felt that this would bring out something special in the Ensemble for the recording.” We had fun learning a new piece of contemporary music. I play piano and, when we were playing a piece called Los Arcos, I had to actually hit the piano!” Daniel (piano) “Piano is my first study and I’ve been playing the saxophone for about a year. I liked the opportunity this gave us to play different genres of music. It was fun and quite a different experience to the music we often play. I really like the Junior Ensemble and the collective feeling you get when playing with other people.” Michelle (saxophone)
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Spotlight on… the Dining Hall Catherine Di Placido became the School Chef in 2018. With four children of her own, she uses her experience as a mum, as well as a professional caterer, to plan and prepare meals that help us to create a home-from-home experience for our pupils. “I grew up in a very multi-cultural place in Canada and married an Edinburgh Italian – I learned a lot about cooking from his mum! – so I bring both of those influences into my cooking. The pupils here have a long day and it’s really important that they’re well nourished, that they enjoy what they’re given and that it’s home cooked. My menus feature lots of vegetables and pasta, fish at least once a week, and a meat-free day for everyone once a week too, as well as a vegetarian or vegan option for every meal. Our boarders have three meals a day at the School and I make a full, cooked Scottish breakfast four times a week, continental on the other days, and waffles, pancakes and maple syrup on a Wednesday – always a favourite. Day pupils have lunch at the School and there’s both a hot dish and sandwiches on offer. Three times a week, the choristers come in for mid-afternoon tea, before they sing at the Cathedral. They won’t finish until after 6pm so I need to make sure they have something substantial and nutritious. I look for good carbs like giant cousous or quinoa and I’ve got a really good store cupboard! Evening meals for the boarders provide two choices for main course, one of which is vegetarian or vegan, and I also cater for any allergies or intolerances, for example, to eggs. The pupils have a Food Committee and I respond to every single suggestion made to me, so they know they’re being heard. From requests for porridge for breakfast to raspberry jam with seeds – I take it all seriously! The School also has an active Gardening Club and we’ve a staff member with really green fingers who has filled the greenhouse and surrounding area. The children help to grow and pick the produce – pumpkins, potatoes, aubergines, courgettes, peppers, tomatoes, raspberries and blackberries – I always flag it up when home-grown produce is used in dishes. My signature dish is probably buttered chicken – one little boy told me it was the best lunch he’d ever had. We’re a multi-cultural school so that’s reflected in my menu planning with Asian-style dishes, curries, Italian food and traditional Scottish too. I try and mix it up. I plan 24 meals a week on a three-week rotating Our menu and that means I can plan my budget well International and include exciting meals like rib-eye steak Summer Schools or sea bass or salmon a couple of times of are back! Check out week. I run the kitchen here as I’d run my the back cover for more information and to kitchen at home – good, fresh, home-cooked book your place for food with very little wastage. I love what August 2022. I do, and the pupils seem to love it too.”
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Two minutes with two musicians Two pupils take two minutes to talk about what they play, what they love most about being a musician, their favourite music and composers, and their musical highlights (so far!).
Daisy (S5) from Dunblane, Scotland
The viola is like a voice. In ensembles it fits seamlessly into different melodies and solo it has a beautiful, warm sound that you don’t really hear on other string instruments. I love the lower register and the gorgeous tones I can create with it, also experimenting by creating different characters with the rest of my strings. Violas are the ‘middle’ instrument of the orchestra so you can copy and adapt different characteristics from the violin and cello too. I love composers who write big, romantic pieces for the viola – Rebecca Clarke, Max Bruch and Paul Hindemith – and composers influenced by folk music, such as Vaughan Williams and Ernst Bloch. When it comes to chamber music, it’s Shostakovich, Milhaud and Grieg. My highlights so far are definitely masterclasses with Lawrence Power and Tabea Zimmerman, which were inspirational, and travelling to Italy to take part in a chamber music course that included an amazing masterclass from Antonello Farulli. I’ve also taken part (and won prizes!) in many competitions and performed in large-scale productions with the RCS Juniors, including the COP26 Vital Signs of the Planet production.
Robert (S5) from Perth, Scotland
My first study is horn and my second study is piano. What I love most about the horn is its sound and the incredible range of characters and colours it evokes, from ethereal to humorous to brassy. But most importantly, I love its glorious ability to sing. As a horn player, I am constantly learning from others and at every stage of my development, there’s something new to work on. Currently, I’m most interested in contemporary music – it feels as if there are no boundaries and I’m always on a journey of discovery. But Shostakovich sits closest to my heart for his fearless and electrifying style of composing as well as the revolutionary themes in his music – a relevant warning in today’s world. My highlights so far are my earliest performances at the School, most memorably my first chancel concert at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral, as well as performing York Bowen’s Horn Concerto in the Edinburgh Festival Competition.
The path to Enlightenment
With rehearsals underway for Enlightenment – the third work in our Seven Hills Project – we caught up with composer Neil Tòmas Smith. How did you feel when you were asked to be one of the composers for the Seven Hills Project? I was really pleased to have been chosen. The School has given me so much so I want to make this a success and also a really good experience for the pupils. I haven’t written anything for a large ensemble for a while, so on a musical level it’s really exciting to have the resources to work with a larger group of players – it’s really great when these things align.
music. I wanted to encourage them (that’s my intention anyway!) to rethink what they think they know about music and develop an autonomous judgement that relates to the Enlightenment theme. In that end section, the trickiest thing is knowing when not to play – the challenge is to sit back and listen, to not be afraid of the silence, and that presents musical challenges both within the piece and also in relation to the kind of music they’ve played before.
Calton Hill has huge resonance for the School, as it will be its new home in five years. How did the Hill inspire the creative impulse of your composition? Alexander McCall Smith’s poem was the starting point for exploring and re-exploring Calton Hill. I took the historical overview of the poem and went into it in more depth – that was a big part of the creative process. Calton Hill has so many meanings layered over it, over time, that you have to choose one facet; what interested me most was its association with the quest for enlightenment. My first step was to read about the Scottish Enlightenment and, rather than focus on the aesthetics of music during that time – because they’re all about sensitivity and emotion – I grasped the philosophical aspect, that iterative questioning of knowledge. I also read about music theory in the 18th century, which focused a lot on what was natural – the major scales – so I was interested in probing the unnatural aspects that modern composers are interested in, in an Enlightenment vein. Those were the main things I took into the music and I created very pliable material that gets transformed and then transforms back into itself, so you get these cycles that go round and round, reflecting the iterative process of questioning knowledge.
“Some people might say you’ve got to learn the classics first before coming to new music but if, at this early stage when you’re open to so many new things, you have these very different musical experiences – which is why this whole project is so amazing for the pupils – then I think it will make you more open and flexible, which is a vital aspect of being a musician today.”
Knowing that pupils would premiere the piece, did that influence any compositional choices? Building confidence is the main thing. Musically, I didn’t want to write an openly virtuosic piece but although the individual parts are relatively straightforward, their relationship to one another is pretty complicated. There are some rhythmic, temporal issues that are not at all easy and when I wrote the piece I stepped back and thought, it’s tricky but I think they’ll manage it. I wanted to give the pupils a different way of thinking about things that are familiar – whether that’s rhythm or timing or tuning. The whole end section, for example, gives them freedom about when they play and asks questions that they perhaps don’t often get asked by
As an alumnus of the School, how have you found working with the new generation of young musicians and has it brought back any memories of your own time here? It’s been great – it’s definitely different to working with professionals, but in a good way! The pupils are really open and the School has scheduled a lot of time to look at the piece in detail. I’ve been back to the School many times and there’s no getting around that very particular feel to the building. I went downstairs the other day and saw a tiny room that I remembered practising the piccolo in – with ear plugs – there was, and still is, always something musical happening in every single space. Tom David Wilson, to whom I’ve dedicated this piece, was incredibly important to my musical journey – its catalyst really. The guidance I received from him when I started his composition classes at the age of 15, and the musical education I received from him and then the School, made all the difference. Neil read Music and completed a Masters in Composition and Analysis at York, spent two and a half years at the Stuttgarter Musikschule, completed a PhD at Nottingham, and is currently finishing a postdoc with Maastricht University. However, his musical journey really began with Saturday composition classes at the Royal Conservatoire in Scotland (then the RSAMD) with Tom David Wilson. Through Tom, Neil became one of the School’s first extended pathway (now S6 ext) students, and it’s to Tom that Enlightenment is dedicated.
Please help us to take new music and opportunities for music making to as many young people in Scotland as possible through The Seven Hills Project. To make an online donation, please visit https://stmaryscommunity.ptly.uk/supportus Thank you!
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What’s the score? SCO Wind Academy
Our partnership with the SCO goes from strength to strength as we offered more school-aged musicians the opportunity to work with members of the Orchestra and school mentors at the School this term. Delivered over three Sunday afternoon sessions in March, the first two weeks were held via Zoom and week three culminated in a live event on Sunday 27 March at George Watson’s College in Edinburgh. To apply for a place for the next SCO Academy and put your name on the waiting list, please visit www.sco.org.uk/academy or email connect@sco.org.uk
A recital by Susan Tomes
Pianist Susan Tomes visited the School on 26th February to perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto in B flat, K595, ahead of her performance with the Meadows Chamber Orchestra. Susan has won numerous international awards throughout her professional career, including the Worshipful Company of Musicians’ 2013 Cobbett Medal for distinguished services to chamber music. Most recently, in 2021, she was awarded the Presto Music Book of the Year for her publication The Piano – A History in 100 Pieces.
Congratulations Viktor! Lord Clyde Competition Winner Congratulations to Robert (S5), winner of this year’s Lord Clyde Concerto Competition with York Bowen’s Horn Concerto. This featured in our Spring Concert on 30 March at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral. We enjoyed listening to ten entrants, who performed a wide range of works including compositions by Britten, Böhme, York Bowen, Mozart, Elgar, Hoffmeister, Saint-Saëns, Bruch and Mendelssohn. Jeffrey Sharkey, Principal of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland adjudicated. Robert describes his preparation for the Horn Concerto as “… daunting at times – going into the limits of both high/low ranges presenting stamina challenges and requiring more breath support than you thought you’d ever need to get across meandering phrases!” Acknowledging that the core concerto repertoire for horn is very small, Robert was keen to play something outside of Mozart or Strauss and decided that the York Bowen work both presented a healthy challenge and also shone a light on an area of neglected repertoire. Of his win, he said: “Performing the full York Bowen Horn Concerto with my peers in the orchestra is a truly incredible opportunity that I’m so grateful for. I can’t wait to perform it against the backdrop of St Mary’s Cathedral – my earliest performances took place there and it’s always a special place to play.” We can’t wait to hear it Robert!
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In February, we were delighted to learn that Viktor (S3 – first-study composition; second-study piano) was awarded the Bundespreis (federal prize) in the Bundeswettbewerb Jugend Komponiert. The Bundespreis is the most prestigious award for young composers in Germany and comes with a full scholarship for a week-long composition course at Castle Weikersheim in Baden-Württemberg in August, along with a public performance at the Hochschule für Musik in Frankfurt and a professional recording. It’s the third time that Viktor has been awarded but only the first time that he’ll be able to join the course, due to earlier pandemic restrictions. Viktor was also one of five young composers selected for the RSNO Notes from Scotland scheme – a half-year programme of tuition and workshops led by composers Jay Capperauld and Oliver Searle, along with members of the RSNO, for outstanding young composers. His piece, 205 Rose Street, composed under Jay’s guidance, was performed by the RSNO at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in February this year.
Beyond the blue door… news from our alumni
Celebrity Six Creative Thinkers
The School has over 700 alumni around the world. With our 50th anniversary approaching in the 2022/23 academic year, we’re keen to connect and reconnect with as many former pupils as possible. Alumni Connect is our new online website and portal – a place where alumni can keep in touch and share news, events and photographs.
This academic year, we launched our fourth Celebrity Six Series with the theme of ‘Creative Thinkers’. According to Will Conway, the School’s Artistic Director, this is “… less about holding masterclasses and more about bringing in people who are instrumentalists… and more.”
If you are a former instrumentalist or chorister or both, or if you know anyone who is, please head over to stmarysmusic.ptly.uk and register your details. • Harpist Steaph Chaimbeul made her professional debut with the Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestra in February. • The Castalian String Quartet, which includes alumnus Daniel Roberts, played in the Carnegie Hall on 17 February. • Congratulations to Kate Rocket on her new appointment as Director of the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century. Based in the Netherlands, the Orchestra plays on period instruments to bring to life masterpieces from the 18th and early 19th centuries. Kate, who hails from Northumberland, was at St Mary’s Music School from 1994 – 97 and studied trombone with John Kenny and cello with Ruth Beauchamp. • A capacity audience was mesmerised by Steven Osborne OBE as he completed his journey through Books 1 and 2 of Debussy’s Etudes on the Steinway Model B in the School Chapel, on Friday 11 February. It was the perfect way to mark the middle of the spring term, before we broke up for the half-term holiday. Check out the back page for more news on Steven and his recent OBE.
Primary news round-up Hot on the heels of our Burns Supper, held in the Dining Hall on 27 January, our talented primary, S1 and S2 pupils took part in our Robert Burns Junior Poetry Competition on Friday 4 February. Each year produced a winner, with Suzie (P6) and Summer (P7) both reciting To a Louse; Connie (S1) reciting Address to the Toothache and William (S2) reciting A Dream. Congratulations to all the winners, who received certificates and large chocolate bunnies!
Pekka Kuusisto, violinist and conductor, launched our fourth series with an hour of conversation, music and insight with our pupils on 24 September. Renowned for his artistic freedom and fresh approach to repertoire, Pekka is Artistic Director of the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra, Artistic Partner with the St Paul Chamber Orchestra and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra among many other high profile music roles. Anna Meredith MBE joined us via Zoom on 21 January. A composer producer and performer of both acoustic and electronic music, her work straddles contemporary, classical, art pop, techno, large-scale installation and contemporary rock. Anna’s music has featured in everything from BBC’s Last Night of the Proms to fashion campaigns for Prada, Chloé and Fendi, and she is currently Composer in Residence with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Clifton Harrison, violist, ‘Zoomed’ into the School on Friday 25 February and spoke eloquently about his love for his viola and the viola d’amore. A born communicator and inspiring speaker, he enthralled our pupils with his insight into improvisation, orchestra and chamber music, his approach to teaching, and his range of music pursuits which includes piano, percussion, film and dance. Gillian Moore CBE, Director of Music and Performing Arts at the South Bank Centre in London, will be talking to pupils and staff via Zoom on Sunday 27 March. Born in Glasgow, Gillian has worked to bring music and the arts to the widest possible community for over 35 years. Committed to developing initiatives for finding new audiences, and addressing issues of diversity and equality in music, Gillian has collaborated with and commissioned works from many of the great musical and artistic figures of our age. Check our website for the next guests in our series of Creative Thinkers www.stmarysmusicschool.co.uk
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Inspiring futures We were delighted that Steven Osborne, alumnus and the School’s Vice President, was awarded an OBE for services to music in the Queen’s 2022 New Year’s Honours List. A multi-award winning concert pianist and recording artist, Steven studied with Richard Beauchamp, here at the School, before going on to the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester. Described in The Observer as ‘always a player in absolute service to the composer’, Steven’s 2021 recording for Hyperion, of Prokofiev’s War Sonatas, won the Best Instrumental category in the BBC Music Magazine Awards. He was also shortlisted for a Gramophone Award and in 2022, will release solo works by Debussy, his 32nd CD for Hyperion. Without exception, Steven’s recitals receive public acclaim and the last year has seen his focus shift to works by Debussy and Rachmaninov in preparation for his next Hyperion recordings. During 2021/22, he has been Artist in Residence with the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, performing Brahms and Beethoven with conductors Elim Chan and Philippe Herreweghe respectively. Steven is currently Visiting Professor at both the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, he is Patron of the Lammermuir Festival and, in 2014, was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. We are delighted that he continues to be a regular visitor to the School, giving concerts and masterclasses. Last year, Pavlina (S6 ext) interviewed Steven and you can follow their conversation here https://www.stmarysmusicschool.co.uk/blog/article/steven-osborne-interview
Open Days at St Mary’s Music School Open Evening 7pm, Wednesday 20 April (online) Be A Chorister Afternoon 2.30pm–5pm, Friday 6 May (in person) Instrumental Taster Day 11am–3.45pm, Sunday 29 May (in person)
Concerts Spring Concert 7.30pm, Wednesday 30 March, St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral. Featuring the debut performance of Enlightenment by Neil Tòmas Smith Directors’ Recital Prize 7pm, Tuesday 14 June, St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral Summer Concert 7.30pm, Monday 27 June, Queen’s Hall
50th Anniversary Concert 7.30pm, Monday 26 June 2023 Our gala concert celebrates our 50th birthday and will feature a new commission by Sir James MacMillan CBE, performed by alumni and current pupils. Join us for what promises to be a spectacular evening!
International Summer Schools at St Mary’s Music School Woodwind Summer School Sunday 31 July to Friday 5 August 2022 (in person) Piano Summer School Sunday 7 to Friday 12 August 2022 (in person) Strings Summer School Sunday 7 to Friday 12 August 2022 (in person) To book tickets or places, or to find out more, go to
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Sign up for our e-newsletter! Keep up to date with everything that’s happening at St Mary’s Music School, including concerts, masterclasses, open days, auditions and advisory auditions, by signing up to receive our regular e-newsletter at https://stmaryscommunity.ptly.uk/signup
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St Mary’s Music School Trust Ltd is a charity, number SC014611. Registered in Scotland 54504. Registered office: Coates Hall, 25 Grosvenor Crescent, Edinburgh EH12 5EL All images and text © St Mary’s Music School 2022 unless otherwise stated Design by IL Design | Words by Moira Bennett & Allison Traynor Photo credits: Viktor Seifert, Fiona Duncan, John Cameron, Robert Philip, Stephen Wright & Benjamin Ealovega
